What is a Community FUNdraiser?
A Community FUNdraiser is an activity or event hosted by someone like you who wants to make a difference in the community.
Individuals, families, schools and businesses can all help support OFS’s mission to heal hunger by providing crucial funds to ensure no one goes hungry. From lemonade stands to garage sales…from read-a-thons to round ups at the register, there are countless ways to get creative, have fun and heal hunger.
Every dollar you raise helps feed families across the region.
How do you Build-A-Benefit?
1. Pick an Activity
2. Connect with OFS
3. Rally Your People
4. Make an Impact
Whether you are planning ahead or doing a last-minute FUNdraiser, we can help with ideas, resources and custom donation links with QR codes.
LEARN MORE:
FUNdraiser Ideas
Start with a simple FUNdraiser or get creative with your own ideas! Here are just a few possibilities:
DIY for Good
Lemonade Stand
Art or Bake Sale
Garage Sale
Car Wash
School Spirit Fundraiser
Students4STL raised funds at a school soccer match to support the OFS Fresh Rx program.
Tim’s Ultramarathon
Tim ran 100 miles through Forest Park to benefit OFS, raising more than $35,000.
KB Klassix’s Art Sale
KB sold her original paintings and prints at an art fair to help raise money for OFS.
Neighborhood Coffee Stand
These kids opted for lattes over lemonade at a stand that raised money for OFS.
Summer Splash Party
KARE Camp used games, water slides & raffles to raise funds for OFS and other charities at Stacy Park.
Events & Parties
Birthday Celebration
Golf Outing
Trivia Night
Fitness Class
Sawyer’s Birthday Tribute
Instead of gifts, Sawyer asked that everyone donate to OFS!
Cocktail Party for a Cause
$1 from each cocktail at the CWE party raised money for OFS tornado relief efforts.
Themed Community Event
Yelp STL’s Wild West night raised donations at the door for hunger relief.
Food Festival Fundraiser
“A Taste of U-City” has featured local restaurants with proceeds to OFS.
Concert Fundraiser
Joe’s Café hosted Feed the Beat with live bands for OFS.
Ticket Giveaway Raffle
Fans donated for a chance to win Jake’s Leg concert tickets.
Business Give Backs
Round Up at the Register
Portion of Sales
Contests & Challenges
Team Building
Creative Challenge
Bank of Washington donated $10 for every block colored in their fundraiser.
Arcade Night Out
Up-Down arcade donated play proceeds to fight childhood hunger.
Retail Giveback Campaign
Altar’d State + Arula donated $7,575 through their #giveback program.
Cook-Off Competition
Whole Foods Market hosted a Grass-Fed Burger Cook-Off with proceeds for OFS.
Jewelry Give Back Night
Kendra Scott donated 20% of sales during a special OFS event.
How It Works
Ready to hold your own FUNdraiser? We’ve got helpful guidelines and resources to help you along the way.
1
Get Started with Your FUNdraiser
Once you’ve picked your idea, let us know what you’re planning. We’ll answer your questions, make sure you know how to download the logo and OFS flyers, and help you create a FUNdraiser that makes a real impact.
• Fill out the form here.
• Read FAQs here.
2
What You’ll Get from Us
We’re here to help you make your fundraiser a success. Here’s what we provide:
• OFS logos and flyer for download.
• Social media promotion tips and sample posts.
3
Celebrate Your Impact
After your event, share your success! Send photos, videos, or a short recap to events@operationfoodsearch.org (or your designated contact), or tag @OpFoodSearch on social.
Donation checks can be made out to Operation Food Search and mailed to: OFS/Jane Calkins, 1644 Lotsie Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63132.
Frequently Asked Questions
Planning Your Fundraiser
Nope! Anyone can host a fundraiser–individuals, families, student groups, schools, businesses or teams. You don’t need to be a 501(c)(3) organization.
That’s up to you! It can be as simple or as creative as you like–from lemonade stands and garage sales to trivia nights, yoga classes, or online campaigns. If you’re stuck, you may find inspiration by viewing our highlights of past FUNdraisers above.
There’s no minimum. Every dollar makes a difference. Whether you raise $50 or $5,000, your fundraiser helps feed individuals and families facing hunger. In fact, because we are able to leverage our relationships with food donors, every dollar raised helps OFS bring healthy meals to families who need them.
Yes, and we love when they do. Read-a-thons, bake sales, school challenges, and other student-led events are great ways for young people to make an impact and experience the joy of doing service.
Yes. If you’re passionate about something specific–like childhood nutrition–just let us know when you sign up. Keep in mind, however, that the more flexibility we have to determine which programs to support, the better. Your donation will always be used where it’s needed the most.
That depends on the type of event and your location. If permits or insurance are required, that will have to be handled by the organizers.
No. Because this is a third-party fundraiser, it’s not possible to use OFS’s tax-exempt status, tax ID, or nonprofit documentation for your event.
Promoting and Running Your Event
We’ll help provide resources, but we can’t take on event logistics or guarantee attendance by staff or volunteers. That said, we will certainly try to attend if possible. And we’re definitely cheering you on every step of the way!
While we can’t promote every fundraiser on our channels, we do love sharing highlights when possible. Please keep us in the loop and share information and photos.
Absolutely. Virtual fundraisers–like birthday donations, social media campaigns, or peer-to-peer giving–are powerful and easy to set up. We can create a custom donation page for you to use with a QR code.
Yes. We have our logos and organizational overview flyer for you to download.
On this website, you can download:
• OFS logos and brand materials (with usage guidelines)
• An organizational flyer that gives you an overview of our work.
• Social media tips with sample language you can use.
After Your Event
You can donate online, mail a check, or arrange a drop-off–we’ll work with you to make it easy. Checks can be made out to Operation Food Search and mailed to OFS/Jane Calkins at 1644 Lotsie Blvd. Saint Louis, MO 63132.
Yes, please! We love seeing what our supporters are doing and may feature your event in future communications or social media. Send photos, stories, or highlights to your OFS contact or jane.calkins@operationfoodsearch.org.
Definitely! Once we receive your donation, we’ll follow up with a thank-you and an acknowledgement for your records.
Logos and Resources
OFS Logos
OFS Flyer
Social Media Tips
